Article May 10, 1999 Issue

DOES RELIGION SUPPORT HEALTH? ASKS COLUMBIA REPORT

Earlier this year, several departments at Columbia University, New York, collaborated on a report examining aspects of the relationship between "religion, spirituality, and medicine." It was written by Drs. Richard P. Sloan, E. Bagiella, and T. Powell, and published in the British medical journal The Lancet in February.

The report points out that at various times worldwide, medical and spiritual care were dispensed by the same person. At other times, passionate (even violent) conflicts characterized the association between religion, medicine, and science.

As interest in alternative and complementary medicine has grown, says the report, "the notion of linking religious and medical interventions has become widely popular, especially in the United States. For many people, religious and spiritual activities provide comfort in the face of illness.

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